LEESBURG – Three incumbent appointees to Leesburg Town Council will keep their seats after the Republican caucus Saturday.
Douglas Jones, Thomas Moore and Lawrence Richey received the most votes out of the five candidates during the meeting of Republican registered voters. With no one filing as a Democrat, the three will begin their first full term Jan. 1.
Richey, who was appointed about 10 months ago to fill a vacancy on the three-person board, received 63 votes. Jones and Moore, appointed a year and a half ago following resignations, received 57 and 39 votes.
The other two candidates were Theodore Carter, 28 votes, and Tanya Wood, 23 votes.
In brief speeches before the vote, candidates described how long they had lived in town – Richey, a resident since 1968, described himself as “the old man on the board” – and their plans to attract business, improve sidewalks and listen to their constituents.
Moore noted after the vote that Leesburg has not had a formal, two-party election since perhaps the 1960s.
“Appointments have been a practice in Leesburg for 40 or 50 years,” he said. “We can never find anybody who would go down to the courthouse and file for candidacy.”
